


Don't Think Twice

by kuresoto



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon, And he's winging everything in life, Banter, Battle Couple, Ben Solo is a Mess(TM), Ben Solo will always look at Rey like she's the centre of the universe, Companionable Snark, Dark Rey, F/M, Humor, I am fueled by anime and memes and this fic shows, Referenced background trauma, Rey your tsundere tendancies are showing, Sith Rey, Smuggler Ben Solo, Stuck together in a confined space, or is she
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-24
Updated: 2018-02-24
Packaged: 2019-03-18 20:59:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13689693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kuresoto/pseuds/kuresoto
Summary: When Ben woke up that morning, determined to steal the Millennium Falcon back from Unkar Plutt, he didn't think he would be beaten to it by a Sith Lord, no less.Smuggler Ben/Dark Rey AU





	Don't Think Twice

**Author's Note:**

  * For [moodiful819](https://archiveofourown.org/users/moodiful819/gifts).



> Thank you so, so much to Ali/[reyofdarkness](https://reyofdarkness.tumblr.com/) for beta-ing! You're literally a life saver and just simply /[pacha meme](http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/facebook/001/070/061/d96.jpg)
> 
> prompt: Smuggler Ben Solo and Dark Rey (Dark or Sith can be up to the author) stuck on a ship together.

How the hell had he gotten himself into this mess? He knew there had always been a possibility that his plans, no matter how well calculated, could go to shit, but this had gone far beyond just a snag or a slight inconvenience. No, this hedged on the realm of so disastrously bad that he could not see himself getting out of it. And he was no coward. He knew when to run and when to fight, and, despite his current predicament of hiding in a compartment of his father’s beloved Millenium Falcon’s flooring, he knew whatever happened was going to dangle him precariously close to death’s door.

He stared at the pair of Stormtroopers that lay unmoving above him. It had taken him years to track down the ship, his father foolishly having allowed it to be stolen by Gannis Ducain, never able to recover it after the Falcon switched hands. Ben Solo had never expected it to end up on Jakku, of all dirt places of nowhere, but he didn’t care to dwell on that thought before he jettisoned to the sandy planet. It was easy to sneak aboard the ship, and with good timing, it seemed.

The cargo bay door was open, despite the tarp draped over the body, indicating that someone must have been in the process of procuring the vessel. He had to act fast, so, without wasting more time, he slipped onto the ship and hid in one of the many hidden compartments that were scattered around. He had basically grown up on the Millenium Falcon and knew the hallways and secret spaces like the back of his hand. He didn’t know who was buying the ship, but he figured he could steal it from them once it was up in space.

Only, he didn’t expect the ship to get stolen from right under the junk dealer's nose. Or for the culprit to be affiliated with, or directly from, the First Order.

So as he peered through the grills of the cover that kept him secreted away and prayed to the Maker that the two Stormtroopers, who marched past him armed with blasters, didn’t notice him, he grew even more curious about who was piloting the ship. Regardless, he could take on the pair of Stormtroopers and take back his ship. He didn’t fear the First Order, and he had the element of surprise on his side. With the Stormtroopers incapacitated, he couldn’t imagine the pilot being much of a challenge.

Knocking out the Stormtroopers was insultingly easy and made Ben genuinely wonder who was in charge of training at the First Order for it to have become so lax. Surely the regime was better than that, right? Either way, it gave Ben a boost of confidence, enough to take out the pilot, whoever it was.

Waiting in the shadows of the ship’s flooring, he readied himself for when the pilot’s inevitable footsteps would come. And come they did; only, he didn’t expect the figure in black to show up. Clad in black, sleeveless robes and a heavy mask, the person stepped over the unmoving bodies and let out a disgusted sound, the noise crackling through the mask’s voice box.

Abandoning his plans, Ben slunk further into the shadows the moment he saw the shiny black mask and the dark grey cylinder clutched in the owner’s hands. It didn’t help when the unknown person flung the bodies aside without needing to lay a finger on them before striding back to the cockpit.

For all he knew about the First Order, they were merely an organisation with opposing political views to the New Republic. Because it was essentially based off of the Empire’s regime, there were rumors that the First Order would go down the same path, but never in Ben’s wildest dreams did he think they would utilize dark side users, or even Sith. He didn’t even know that there were any Sith in existence. As far as he knew, anyone with Force affinity was training with his uncle, Luke Skywalker, and last he heard, the academy was doing well. That was, everyone apart from himself, his parents believing it to be prudent to let Ben decide what he wanted to do. So, as a child, he had received some Force training but decided not to continue during his teen years.

He could take out Stormtroopers, but even he knew he wasn’t trained enough to take out a Sith. Even if the Sith looked female from her frame, he didn’t delude himself into thinking he stood a chance. He had a blaster. She had a lightsaber, a double-ended one too, if he’d seen the hilt design correctly, along with an incredible affinity with the Force, judging from how easy it was to lift the bodies.

He mentally cursed himself for landing himself in such a situation, whilst trying to figure out if he had enough courage to take on the Sith Lord, or if he should remain hidden and escape the first chance he got. If he waited, it was likely he would end up on a First Order planet, but at least he wouldn’t have to deal with any Sith Lords. Yep, that sounded like a solid plan with far better chances.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, figuring they were still deep in hyperspace to wherever they were going, and his fingers itched to do something. This always happened, and it was probably the main reason why Ben decided to quit Luke’s Jedi training. There was too much meditation and simple breathing involved, and it drove him crazy. No, he much preferred flying ships at breakneck speeds and joining his dad on smuggling runs, much to his parent’s chagrin. As hard as they tried to keep him out of trouble, trouble always seemed to find Ben, even when on simple transport runs with Han.

Suddenly remembering a particularly bad run-in with some rival smugglers, Ben hoped that nothing bad happened to him now. More so than his already terrible predicament, he thought as he started to take apart his blaster. He had to use this nervous energy somehow, and he wasn’t about to go charging into the cockpit to confront the Sith Lord.

It wasn’t until the sixth time he’d put his blaster back together that the ship jerked to a sudden halt. It didn’t feel like they’d dropped out of hyperspace, but rather forcibly pulled from it. A few moments passed before a loud sound, almost like metal being torn apart, filled the ship’s hallways. Dread washed over him as he scurried through the Falcon’s underground network towards the cockpit. He couldn’t sit around any longer; he had to know what was going on. Unfortunately, the hidden crawlspace only went so far.

Careful not to make a sound, Ben lifted the flooring grill and hoisted himself out of the secret compartment. He crept closer to the cockpit and an animated conversation already reached his ears as he passed a bulkhead door. He stopped mid-step, foot hovering off the ground slightly as he braced himself against the wall. If he leaned to the side at the right angle, he could catch a glimpse of the pilot once again and hear more of the conversation going on.

“—I don’t care who you are. Leave now and I’ll consider sparing you,” said the cloaked woman.

Shoulders slumping, Ben almost let out an audible sigh when he recognised the voice at the end of the line.

“Are you hearing me? I am Bala-Tik, leader of the Guavian Death Gang, and I don’t take orders from anyone, especially the thief who stole _my ship_!”

“You must have a death wish.”

Not wanting to hear the rest of the conversation, Ben tiptoed back towards the main area, past the lounge seats, and slipped into the small room that held the power and circuitry piping. He had to work fast if he wanted to make it out alive, hopefully with the crime gang and Sith no longer an issue.

-

If Ben Solo had a credit for every time his plans failed spectacularly, he might have enough to consider giving up his life of crime. Furthermore, he had a pretty good scale of how to rank the escapades that had resulted in failure.

When he was five, he’d built a crude podracer when his parents told him he was too young to fly one, which didn’t end in _complete_ disaster, but he did rocket himself into a tree, breaking five bones in his body. On a scale of one to ten, that was a one.

When he was twenty-five, he’d tried talking his way out of a deal he had made with the Kanjiklub, only to narrowly avoid being riddled with blaster holes. It resulted in all his hair being singed off, forcing him to be bald for a year. It wasn’t the _worst_ , but he loved his hair, and so that was an eight. After today, that incident dropped down to a solid four.

He stood with his hands up in the air, his blaster on the opposite side of the cargo bay, and red-armored foot soldiers littered around him. He wouldn’t even need to categorise the event if it wasn’t for the Sith Lord in front of him, hand outstretched to hold him in place. He couldn’t even let his lips run loose in a valiant attempt to distract the Force user with his quips and delightful conversational skills.

Lowering her hand, the Sith stepped over the bodies and circled him like prey. “How did you get on this ship?” she asked, voice distorted by her mask. With his body still frozen and with no foreseeable plan to let him go, the Sith continued surveying him. “I made sure this ship was empty when I took it from Plutt.”

Ben’s eyes, currently following her, widened slightly at the venomous tone with which she referred to the junk boss of Jakku. He had only caught snippets of what Unkar Plutt was like and sure, he was a slimeball, but that went without saying for anyone in charge of anything on a non-capital planet. He had caught a glimpse of the Crolute when he’d snuck onto the Falcon, and he looked like a typical crime boss, so why did this Sith hold such animosity towards him? She was with the First Order; surely she had more important things to worry about.

“Speak. Now,” she commanded as function returned to his body.

In that moment, Ben wondered if there was a scenario where he survived this encounter. His mind was going millions of parsecs a minute, and there was no way he wasn’t going to get tortured if he wasn’t instantly killed. There was no way to answer her question without being maimed in some way, so, true to Solo fashion, he decided if he was going to die right then and there, he would go out with a bang.

And he wanted to know who was behind the mask. He couldn’t get a name, so he settled for seeing her face.

Using what little knowledge with the Force he had, he was genuinely surprised when his blaster sailed through the air and into his awaiting hand, but he didn’t have time to gloat. He aimed at the space just past the Sith’s head, and as she flinched and shielded her body from the sparks, he shot towards her. Despite the multiple thick layers, she felt nice against his chest. Soft, with a hint of soap. He wished he could hold on for a little longer, but with her squirming like a wild animal in his arms, it was now or never. In one swift motion, he ripped the helmet off and flung it aside.

The motion must have snagged something because all of a sudden, he was greeted by locks of brown hair tumbling from under the helmet, half still up in a bun at the top of her head. With her hair perfectly framing her face, she stared at him with wide eyes and mouth slightly ajar. _He_ couldn’t believe what he’d just done, so he could only imagine what she was thinking.

Then, a slight red bloomed against her cheeks, followed by the cutest nose scrunch he had ever seen. Suddenly, a sharp pain blossomed at the side of his head, followed by darkness clouding his vision.

The last thing he saw before passing out was the sheer abhorrence that shone in her eyes, and he couldn’t help but grin.

He really was his father’s son.

-

He didn’t startle awake, instead slowly returning to the land of consciousness when the feeling of someone staring at him became too unbearable. The first thing he noticed was that his hands were bound behind his back and, after a few pulls, he felt the acceleration straps rub against his forearm. At least he didn’t end up on the floor, he thought as he rocked his head back, knowing the back of the lounge would support his neck. His lip was still bleeding, a result from getting caught in the crossfire between Bala-Tik and the Sith Lord. As he ran his tongue over the cut, his eyes focused and finally caught sight of the Sith Lord.

She was standing so still that he didn’t notice her at first, but now that he was properly awake, he wondered how long she had been there, standing on the opposite side of the hologram board and just _staring at him_. Her mask was back on, and Ben couldn’t help but pout at that detail. He barely got a good look at her face, but at least now he could analyse her.

The dark red leather gloves she wore ended past her elbow, allowing for the skin of her upper arm to be exposed; the only skin to be seen amongst her black pants and black top that went high on her neck. From beneath her robes, he could see small blades strapped to her thighs, along with various slim pouches and a circular object attached to her thick, black belt.

His eyes never left her as he shifted his weight to a more comfortable angle on the lounge. Still, she stared at him, unmoving. “Is there something that interests you?” he asked with barely masked suggestion.

There was a beat before she finally spoke. “No one has ever seen my face.”

“I guess that makes me special.” He grinned and wiggled his brows, only to stop when it drew no reaction from her. He sighed. “Rest assured, your Sith face is safe since I couldn’t get a good look before you...you know.” Ben clicked his tongue and flicked his head, imitating the motion of his head being knocked. “Your hair looks nice though,” he offered, catching sight of the brown poking from under her helmet.

“I’m not a Sith,” she stated.

He let out a snort. “Sure,” he drawled, voice laced with sarcasm. “Let me guess, you’re also actually a ‘good guy’.”

“It’s amusing how little you know about me, and yet you’re so ready to make such assumptions. From what?” She gestured at herself. “From my appearance?”

“Well, you’re wearing all black, and you have a mask that just doesn’t bode well, but the most important factor is that _you have a red lightsaber!_ And you work for the First Order!”

It was time for her to snort. “You don’t know for sure that I’m with the First Order.”

Ben gaped at her, eyes sliding to the pair of Stormtroopers who still lay unmoving under a pile of dead Guavian Death Gang members. “Er, I’m pretty sure they’re the only ones who use Stormtroopers. I’m assuming that the First Order will be here any moment—”

In an instant, she was across the hologram board with her fist gripping the front of his shirt. “You know nothing about me or the First Order,” she snarled.

He had to admit, she terrified him. At a distance, she was innocent enough, but directly before him? He wasn’t sure what was going on, but his skin crawled seeing her mask up close. It gave off bad vibes and almost called out to him. He cringed and tried to get away, unable to do so when her other hand grasped his jaw and forced him to look at her. “What are you doing?” he managed from between his clenched teeth.

“If you won’t answer my questions, then I’ll have to get the answers myself!”

There was a sensation of something probing the base of his skull, wriggling and persistent. It wasn’t painful, only uncomfortable, but every time he tried to look away, the feeling pressed harder against his head. “S-Stop.”

“Why?” she whispered, her grip on his jaw loosening slightly. “Who are you?”

“Why do you want to know so bad?”

“Because…there’s something…” She drifted off and almost let go of him completely, only to suddenly rip off her helmet. Her brows were furrowed in concentration, as if trying to solve the mystery around him, only there was none, as far as he knew. “You’re stopping me,” she accused.

“I-I’m not,” he stuttered, barely able to form a simple sentence as he drank in her appearance. She looked young, much younger than himself, with a childlike face, but the frown and narrowing of eyes constantly reminded him that she was far from a child. She was Sith and—

“ _Stop calling me a Sith!_ ” The vice grip on his collar returned, jolting him forward like a ragdoll. “I’m not a _Sith_. Don’t insult me with such titles.”

“Then what are you?”

With another rough shove, she let go of him and put as much space between them as she could. She looked shaken, which didn’t make sense since he hadn’t done anything. “How about this: you tell me who you are, and I’ll do the same.”

He guffawed. “Do you have a habit of making deals with your captives?” Ben tried not to think about how cute she looked when she got annoyed, her eyes rolling with a slight sneer on her face.

“This is hardly a deal,” she commented, oblivious to his thoughts.

“Hey, I’m pretty curious about you, but not as much as you are about me. When I get off this ship, I’ll be perfectly content with forgetting you,” he lied.

“How can you be so sure that you will get off this ship? Or that we won’t meet again?” Unclipping her lightsaber from her belt, she ignited one end of the weapon and gave it a twirl, a few swipes being near-misses to Ben.

He had noticed the blade looked slightly unstable before, crackling dangerously, but thought he was mistaken. Now, he could see clearly that her saber wasn’t like any he had seen before.

“I’m very skilled in tracking down my prey. After all, how do you think I was able to locate the famed _Millenium Falcon_?” she gloated.

“Why does the First Order want this ship so bad? It’s a piece of garbage.” The best piece of garbage he had ever flown, but he wasn’t about to tell the Sith lady that.

“None of your concern—” There was a beeping that cut her off mid-sentence.

Ben craned his neck to locate the source, only for his eyes to fall on the small, circular object clipped on her belt.

She let out a frustrated noise and stormed to the cockpit, leaving Ben tied up with more questions than he’d begun with.

As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t hear the hushed conversation. If she wasn’t a Sith, then what was she? A Jedi? That was preposterous. No way would any Jedi help an organisation like the First Order. He didn’t even know much about the First Order, but his mother was wary of them. Too often, she ranted to him about how the Senate had wool over their eyes, which made his heart clench because he hated seeing his mother so upset.

It was at times like this that Ben wished he’d paid more attention to what Luke had taught him. Sure, he remembered the basic Force techniques, and they helped him in more ways than one whenever he ran into trouble, but the theory side of things? If he had been more attentive, then maybe he would have some idea who this lady was.

A few moments later, she returned and snarled at him with renewed enthusiasm. “Okay, I don’t have time for this. What did you do?”

Taken aback by her sudden question, Ben frowned at the annoyance on her face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She waved her hands around. “This. We’re not moving. _You_ did something. What did you do?”

Oh. _That_. Feigning innocence, he cocked his head to one side and shrugged. “Well, this ship is pretty old, so maybe it just broke down?”

“I’m not an idiot, _Ben Solo_ ,” she said, smiling in triumph when he froze at his name. “I had tracked this ship down in hopes it would lead to Han Solo, but finding _you_?” She let out a bark of laughter. “After the day I’ve had, and believe me, it’s been _a day_ , finding out you’re Ben Solo is just the news I need.” She plopped herself down on the hologram board and crossed her legs, leaning back to look over her shoulder at him. “Even if you don’t tell me how to fix this ship, I’ll find out soon enough.” To add salt to the wound, she tapped his nose with her finger before flouncing off to the same small room he had retreated to right before the Guavian Death Gang boarded his ship.

 _Kriff_ , he had to get out of his bindings. He had removed and hidden one of the main components of the Falcon’s sublight engines as a contingency in case he couldn’t get his ship back, but the place he’d hidden it had been under fire during the scuffle. He didn’t need to check to know, but he was pretty sure that vital component was destroyed. But, if he played his cards right, he could spin the situation to benefit him. After all, _she_ didn’t have to know that the component was destroyed, by her, no less.

A few moments later, she returned and stood before him, hands on hips. “Really?”

He merely shrugged, not seeing a point in hiding. “This is my father’s ship. You should have expected nothing less.”

“I highly doubt you can call it Han Solo’s ship anymore since it’s been on that junk desert for ten years.”

“How did you…” He trailed off, question forgotten as he tried to analyse the woman before him. Only himself, his parents and Chewie knew exactly when the Millennium Falcon was lost, the rest of the galaxy under the impression that it had merely been retired. Now, he was far too curious about her. “You know who I am; it’s only fair you tell me who you are.”

“Too bad I had to find out your identity myself,” she said, clicking her tongue. “I have to admit, I didn’t realise you would have Force abilities. Shouldn’t you be with your beloved uncle, training and finding all those poor souls in the galaxy with Force abilities?”

Ben frowned at the mockery in her voice. It almost sounded like she was bitter about Luke’s academy.

“I chose to not study with him,” he said carefully. “I have no interest in whatever Luke wants to do.” It was subtle, but he saw it, the way she clenched her fists before hiding her hands behind her back. “Who trained you?”

He watched closely as her jawline twitched, probably from her teeth being ground together. Something flashed in her eyes, disappearing before Ben could analyse it properly. “No one trained me,” she said.

“Really,” he said, eyebrow raised and not believing her for a second. “Why do I have a hard time believing that? No offence, you seem pretty powerful, but you would need guidance. If Luke didn’t find you, then who did?” He was thinking out loud, a habit he’d picked up from Uncle Lando, and didn’t expect an actual response.

“Who indeed,” she whispered bitterly.

Something was amiss.

Past the contempt that shone in her eyes, there was something else. Something he wouldn’t have suspected coming from her background, but it was definitely there. And now that he saw it, the small ticks that gave her away were impossible to miss. The way the corners of her mouth twitched downwards, the movement so minute that it was barely noticable. The sound of her leather gloves squeaking as she tightened her grip on her lightsaber. The deep intake of air as if to calm herself. Her back ramrod straight, with equally tense shoulders.

Resentment. And sadness.

If Luke didn’t find her, then someone else did - someone who’d made her who she was, and he couldn’t see that process being easy. She was young, and even though she stood strong and proud before him, he could almost see the tremendous strain her Master had placed on her. It was another reason why Ben had quit his Force training when he did, already hearing whispers of how he was the famed nephew of Luke Skywalker and thus must be just as powerful, if not more. He didn’t have to be an adult to know that wasn’t what he wanted in life.

Another thing that bothered Ben was that there were only two Stormtroopers with her. Even if stealing the Millennium Falcon was her plan from the start, surely the First Order could afford to spare more than _two_ soldiers to their Sith Lord? The more he thought about it, the less everything made sense.

“What do you want from me?” he asked quietly.

She responded with an equally soft voice. “Take me to Luke Skywalker.”

If it was any other circumstance, he would reject her outright, but she looked so lost and so broken all of a sudden. “What are you going to do with him?”

“Something I should have done a long time ago.”

 _That_ was the wake up call he needed. “Nope, not gonna do that. Sorry, but I’d rather die than lead you or the First Order to him.” How could he be so stupid? She was a Sith. She was evil. Of course she wanted to kill Luke.

She let out a growl, only to be cut off by her comlink once again. “ _Lady Rey, they’re_ —”

_SMASH!_

The circular object shattered against the Falcon’s bulkhead, little pieces of plastic scattering across the ship’s floor. Even with her back to him, he could see how labored her breathing became, angry exhales through nostrils that were undoubtedly flared. She whipped around with rage in her eyes and barked at him, “Where is Luke Skywalker?!”

He should have been afraid, but there was only one thing on his mind. “ _Rey_ ,” he breathed. She was red-faced with hair plastered to her temples, and it did nothing but enhance her beauty. She was so full of life, so different from the Jedi Knights training with Luke, that it only made him want to hide her from Luke. And from her mysterious Master. He wanted her for himself.

She must have caught that last thought, because the red on her cheeks intensified. “D-Don’t do that.”

He couldn’t look away. Shy or annoyed, she continued to mystify him. “Do what, Rey?”

“That!” she snapped. “Stop saying my name like _that!_ ” Ben followed her with his eyes as she started to pace before him. “I am no Sith. I am the Master of the Knights of Ren! Apprentice to Snoke.” She spun around and jabbed her finger at him. “I command nothing but respect within the First Order. You will come to fear me, and you will regret being so open with me.”

Throughout her tirade, his eyes never left her lips. They looked nice. Plush and utterly kissable.

“Stop that,” Rey said, backing away from him warily.

“It’s the truth.”

She let out another frustrated growl and stomped away. He vaguely heard her mutter ‘I have to do everything myself’, and didn’t have to wonder long as she reappeared with something that looked suspiciously like a toolbox.

She threw him a dirty look and dropped it on the table with a loud bang before removing the floor panels and lowering herself into the floor.

Ben craned his neck, eagerly trying to catch sight of her; it wasn’t every day that he would be graced with such a scene. He didn’t expect her to try and fix the ship herself. As far as he was concerned, without the vital sublight engine component, their ship was dead in space and nothing could fix that.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to pull, but you can’t fix the ship! The part I removed got destroyed, and without it, the Falcon won’t move!” he called out, still tied to the lounge.

Rey poked her head up and sent him a filthy glare. “And whose fault is that?” she snarked, using the Force to tip the toolbox over so its contents fell on his foot.

“Ow!” He winced and sent her a hurt look. “If you _must_ know, it was you! You were too reckless when killing Bala-Tik that you took out the part I hid in the wall!”

She fixed him with a blank stare, her dead eyes boring holes into his skull before flicking to the wall in question. “Oh,” she said softly. “Well…if you just kept out of my way, this wouldn’t be an issue!”

“You were stealing my ship!”

“It’s not _your_ ship! I stole it from Plutt, not you! Someone was going to eventually; might as well be me!”

“Yeah, but you want the ship so you can somehow get to Luke! And kill him! What did he ever do to you?!”

“He never did anything for me! Nothing!” She abruptly hoisted herself back up with a burst of energy and swivelled around to face him. “This _amazing_ Luke Skywalker that everyone holds in such high regard! Everyone praises him and showers him with worship and love! He is a legend, he is powerful, and he can do no wrong, except all I see are the consequences of his so-called ‘assistance to the galaxy’,” she mocked.

“What? What are you talking about?” Ben pulled on his restraints and cursed. How he would love to break free of his bindings and shake some sense into Rey. “What Luke is doing is good. These kids he finds, they need guidance. If their Force abilities go unchecked—”

“Then they end up like me,” she butted in. “Unstable. Dangerous. Unpredictable.”

And in that moment, things became clearer. “What did they do to you?” he asked in a hushed voice. Beyond the anger and resentment in her eyes was also sadness. Loneliness. Feelings he could relate to. He had felt similar emotions during his short stay at Luke’s academy, catching other students whispering about him and how he was destined for greatness. If the breathing and the long periods of meditation didn’t turn him off Jedi training, _that_ did. Those few years at Luke’s academy were the loneliest he had ever experienced. So the moment he was old enough, he left that place for good and never looked back.

“It doesn’t matter. I have business with Skywalker, whether you like it or not. Just as soon as I fix this piece of junk—”

Her sentence was cut off when a loud siren echoed through the halls from the cockpit.

The pair looked at each other in alarm; Rey jumped to her feet and ran to the front of the ship as Ben struggled in his restraints, desperate to join her. He had heard the sound too many times in his life that it was ingrained in his mind to run to the cockpit or gunner seat. “Hey! Let me go! I can help!” he shouted at her. “You can’t do this alone!”

A second later, he saw her running to the gunner stations. “I don’t need your help!”

Ben screamed in frustration as he yanked on his restraints repeatedly, not caring for the thin red marks his movements would leave behind. “Rey!”

It wasn’t long before the ship was under fire, Ben almost falling over as the walls shook. “Rey! Let me go! Without sublight engines, you can’t get them!” His cries went ignored as the ship sustained more attacks. Urgh, he had never met such a stubborn woman in his life! “I refuse to die on this garbage ship because you were too stubborn to let me help!”

He slumped in his seat with a heavy sigh and was about to accept his fate when he spied a vibroblade not far from his feet. He had to contort his body into an uncomfortable angle, but it was worth it when he clamped the object between his boots and successfully flung it to his hands. With his hands free, he was ready to charge into the gunner room and shake the woman in black for being so stupid, but he decided that staying alive was the priority. He could throttle her later.

Unable to fix the engines, they had to find a way to move the ship so that Rey could actually hit whatever enemy was attacking them. With Rey safely in the gunner seat and away from the cargo bay, Ben grabbed an oxygen mask and prayed to the Maker that his insane plan had some merit. His last thought as he held onto a railing and punched the giant red button by the cargo bay doors was ‘eh, there’s nothing important here anyways’.

He slammed against the bulkhead from the sudden suction of oxygen. He didn’t completely open the door, only enough to suck out the bodies and gain the momentum they needed to dodge their enemy’s attacks. Once he saw the stars moving past, he quickly shut the door and ran to the opposite gunner station.

“What did you do?!” he heard Rey yell, followed by a triumphant whoop when she hit her target.

“I just saved your life! A thanks would be nice!” he sniped back, throwing aside his oxygen mask in exchange for a gunner headband. “Who’s attacking us?!”

“The First _kriffing_ Order!

“ _WHAT?_ ” With the Falcon still spinning around, Ben was able to catch a glimpse of the enemy TIE fighters and immediately fired some shots at them. “Do they know you’re onboard?!”

“That’s why they’re attacking!”

“After this is over, you and I are gonna have a serious chat!”

“Whatever you say, Solo!”

Even though he muttered in frustration and ground his teeth together, he had to admit he didn’t mind this unexpected adventure. Despite her pretty features, she still grated on his nerves with the amount of things she kept from him. _Was_ she a Sith? It seemed like he was never going to find out!

After a few more volleys, the TIE fighters retreated and jumped into hyperspace, leaving the Falcon floating aimlessly once again. Ben was too overjoyed with still being alive that he jumped out of his seat and ran to meet Rey in the middle, ready to throw his arms around her. He was so close to wrapping her in a tight hug, but got flung aside before his fingertips could even brush against her outer robes.

“What was that for?!” he snapped, rubbing the back of his head.

“You,” she hissed and stomped her foot right between his legs, dangerously close to his crotch. “Fix the ship.”

After everything that had happened, that was what he got? He gaped at her, not quite believing what she said. “No, no way. I’m not fixing anything until you answer some of my questions!”

“Look, we don’t have time. The TIE fighters jumped away, but the ship they came from isn’t far. We need to get out of this quadrant. Unless you hate me so much that you would rather be captured by the First Order!”

“Well, as far as I was concerned, I thought I was already captured by the First Order!”

Without warning, Rey screamed in anger and ignited her saber. Ben was about to take back his words but stopped short when she plunged the plasma beam into the ship’s walls. Once, twice, thrice, and then nothing.

She clicked the weapon’s button and hooked it on her belt with a long exhale before extending her hand to pull him back to his feet. “Fine. Fine,” she repeated calmly, as if she didn’t just destroy part of the ship. “I’ll tell you everything if you would just _fix the kriffing engines!_ ”

He shouldn’t push his luck, but he was still feeling peeved off from his treatment. “Promise?” he asked with a bat of his lashes.

“Yes,” she forced out.

“How do I know you won’t betray me? It’s a thing that you would do.” There was a sigh, followed by a growl. “Okay, okay! If you break your promise, you better watch out. I might demand a kiss from you as compensation!”

Rey snapped her mouth shut and pressed her lips together, whether in anger or embarrassment, he didn’t know.

He didn’t stick around long enough to find out, happily making his way to the flooring that hid more pipes and electrical grids.

Once in the bowels of the ship, he identified the grid he needed to work on and and held out his hand. “Hydrospanner,” he said. Without complaint, she handed him the tool. Huh, interesting. “So, you’re running from the First Order?” he asked as he unscrewed some bolts.

“Yeah, I guess I am,” she replied.

He thought it would be comfortable just throwing questions at her, but an odd tension fell over his shoulders. He pushed past the niggling feeling at the back of his neck and continued. “I don’t blame you. Who’s in command of the First Order military again?”

“General Hux.” Her voice was so quiet that he almost missed her response.

“Right, Hux. That guy seems pretty unbearable. I would want to get out of there ASAP if I was in your shoes too,” he joked, laughing. When no reply came, he ceased his questioning. The rest of his repairs were made in silence with Ben internally berating himself for not waiting until the ship was at least working before playing twenty questions.

He wasn’t sure how much time passed, but eventually he stepped back to view the whole gridboard with a grimace. He couldn’t fix it. He didn’t know what he was doing. As far as he knew, he didn’t think it was possible to restore sublight engines without that component. Oh God, what was he to do? He had been down there for so long already...a cold sweat broke out at the thought of how Rey would react. From under a bunch of pipes, he peeked up to see what she was doing, hoping that she didn’t look too impatient.

And she wasn’t. There were various random parts scattered over the table, and hunched over the mess was Rey, brows tightly knitted together as she _put them together_? They must have been spare parts from the toolbox, in no way compatible with each other, but as he watched in awe, her creation looked like something that could have a proper function. Parts fit perfectly with each other, not falling apart like he had expected.

“What is that?” he asked.

Her eyes flickered to him for a split second before returning to her project. “Something that will fix the ship.”

“Wait, what? You knew I wouldn’t be able to fix it?” He stared at her, open mouthed.

“Of course. You can’t bypass anything to restore the sublight engines. You need an actual part,” she said as if it was the most obvious thing.

“Th-then why did you…” His question faded, too befuddled with what he was being told.

She blew on her newly invented part and fixed him with a look. “Because I needed you out of the way. I didn’t need you asking me a million questions; your questions about _me_ were annoying enough. You wouldn’t shut up if you saw me making something. Here.” She tossed the part to him, Ben scrambling to catch it. “That should do it.”

“Err…” He stared at the item in his hands and had absolutely no idea what to do with it. “You’re gonna have to throw me a bone here,” he said, deadpan, holding her invention quizzically in the palm of his hand.

With another huff, she pointed at the panel just past his face. “There. Try there.”

Warily, Ben turned around and humored her, but when it became blatantly obvious he had no idea what he was doing _again_ , Rey jumped down to join him.

“Here, let me.” In a matter of seconds, the sublight engine whirred to life, causing a triumphant grin to pull at Rey’s face. “See?” she gloated, only to freeze immediately.

He looked at her like she was the only one in the galaxy. He’d never met anyone quite like her, and he wanted to keep her forever, away from both Luke and the First Order. “You’re amazing,” he said in wonder.

The space they were in just fit one person, so having the two of them in the cramped area surrounded by pipes and electric grids was less than ideal. It also forced them close together so they couldn’t look anywhere but at each other. She watched him wide-eyed as he gazed at her. Her cheeks were tinged pink and he could practically feel the heat radiating off her. _Kriff_ , she was so beautiful.

“Rey,” he whispered, right before closing the thin space between them.

If he’d thought holding her in his arms was soft, then her lips on his was something else entirely. Soft couldn’t even come close. Her lips were supple, but as he ran his tongue over her lower lip, he felt small pockets of irregular skin, as if she frequently chewed on her lip. Of course she would, everything about her was perfect.

His hand came up to cup her jaw, thumb rubbing along her cheekbone as their kiss intensified. He heard a gentle sigh escape her nostrils and smiled inwardly, glad that she was enjoying herself. She was a taste he never wanted to end.

He broke away and took in her flushed face. She was both rough and delicate, and that made him want to kiss her again.

“No!” She let out a squeak and put her hand between their lips.

Eyes locked on hers, his tongue darted out and licked the palm of her hand. The noise she made was the most adorable thing he had ever heard.

“I-I need to pilot the ship,” she stuttered, pulling herself out of the compartment before he could try again.

He slowly followed her, noticing that she didn’t bother tying him up again. Leaning against the bulkhead of the cockpit, he watched as her hands danced across the dashboard, as if she knew exactly which buttons needed to be pressed to jump into hyperspace. Interestingly enough, she tapped a few extra before their surroundings became a blur of stars.

“Why did you do that?” he asked, pointing at the buttons she had just pressed.

Still refusing to look at him, she replied, “Plutt put a compressor on the ignition line. This, this, and this takes the strain off the hyperdrive.” Her voice was steady and professional, but he knew she was shaking. The breath she took before speaking was evidence enough.

This was the second time Plutt was mentioned, and this was the second time Rey referred to him as more than just a stranger. Careful not to startle her, he slowly moved to the co-pilot’s seat and ran the usual checks. “You seem to know a lot about Plutt,” he stated, trying his best to look nonchalant as he checked their ship’s course.

She snorted and flicked some more switches. “He’s, unfortunately, an old acquaintance.”

“Huh,” Ben hummed. “So, the First Order...”

She kept her head straight, eyes glaring at the hyperspace scenery whizzing past them.

“That bad, huh?”

She pursed her lips. “You could say that.”

“You’re not on some harebrained mission to try and _kill_ Luke, are you?” Maker, he prayed she wasn’t, because he wouldn’t know how to deal with that fallout.

“No!” She looked aghast at the suggestion. “Stars, is that seriously what you thought this whole time?”

Ben raised his hands in defence. “Can you blame me? You show up out of nowhere, steal this ship in hopes to find Han Solo, who you hope will lead you to Luke Skywalker! Not only is that convoluted as hell, but you’re a Sith! It was a rational conclusion!”

After pausing for a moment, Rey slowly nodded, understanding his line of thought. “I’m not a Sith, by the way.”

“Yeah, you’ve said that multiple times already, but that doesn’t explain anything.”

“I’m just looking for some answers. The one who found me, the one I trained under…” Her words faded, as if she was recalling memories. Whether they were pleasant or not was up to Ben to guess; her face remained stoic and gave nothing away. “They weren’t very good,” she said with a hollow laugh. “I just…I—” She let out a long sigh and just like that, Ben saw her walls start to crumble. “I need someone to show me my place in all this,” she said weakly. “I’m hoping your uncle can help. I don’t know how else to contact him. I’m not a Sith, I swear, but the way my training was going, I wouldn’t be surprised if that was my Master’s goal all along.”

During Ben’s early years with Luke, one of the first things he’d been tasked with was to ingest as much history as he could. Of course, he found it mind-numbingly boring and hated every moment of it, but there was one thing that stuck with him: their training, while vigorous, relied on negative emotions. Hatred. Anger. A hunger to be better than anyone else.

Rey didn’t look like a Sith at all, not the way she slouched in her chair with weary shoulders and sheer exhaustion that rolled off her. He couldn’t even imagine the horrors she had to endure, much less the last straw that finally broke her spirit, forcing her to leave the First Order and her Master. Whilst he didn’t stay with Luke long enough to form a proper Padawan-Master bond, he had a good idea how hard it must have been for Rey to turn on her Master.

“I’ll take you to Luke,” he decided. “You have my word.” He held his hand out, ready to shake on it and solidify his promise. There was nothing binding about it, but it was something he took seriously. On his honor as a smuggler, he would help her, and it had nothing to do with her being fierce and beautiful all at once, with the possibility of seeing her again if he helped her. Nope, not that at all.

She eyed his hand warily, not wanting to get pulled into another hug, or worse.

If Ben had to hold out his hand for eternity, he would; he didn’t want her to feel pressured at all. A lot was happening, and he couldn’t imagine escaping the First Order was an easy task.

“Take all the time you need. I’ll still be here,” he reassured. Just as he was about to pull his hand away, using it to help him get into a more comfortable position, Rey’s hand darted out and grabbed onto his. He didn’t even have time to gasp when he was assailed by hundreds of images.

Endless sand that went on for miles. A little girl with three buns crying. Wailing. Plutt yanking her along. _Come back!_ An imperial ship. A man in a golden robe, gold like that dust of Jakku, taking her away. Relief, only to be cut short. Anger. At her parents for leaving her. At Plutt for working her hands until they bled. At herself for not being able to scavenge enough before another sandstorm hit. Shame that she was weak. Strength and resolve, but not the way Ben was used to it. _I will do anything for you, Master. I will prove my worth_. Constant spherical droids floating around her, zapping her without a moment’s notice. Gasping of air as she smashed multiple droids against the wall. More anger, so much of it, and then pride. Pride when her Master praised her skills. Pride when Stormtroopers parted for her with their backs ramrod straight. Pride when the scavengers she personally recruited as her own looked up to her for guidance. Her team. Her would-be family. Respect, laced with fear. An obnoxious smile on her face as she passed the orange-haired General. Glee that she was regarded higher than him.

Until…

 _Useless_. The word was like a slap across the face. Hux smirking at her as their leader chastised her in front of him. Shame. _Why_? And then more zapping. A fury she locked away, no longer directed at her parents, but at her Master. The golden man boasting that she would never do anything to hurt him. That she was _weak_.

Then, the Millenium Falcon. She looked down at the datapad before her, taking in the sandy planet that shone before her. _Jakku_. Her home planet. Where Plutt remained. Names written under the image of the Corellian light freighter. Han Solo. Leia Organa. Luke Skywalker. _Ben Solo_. A curiosity. The ship vanished and was replaced by his mugshot. _Ba-dum_.

Rey yanked her hand back, and the images cut off abruptly.

His heart thumped loudly against his ribs, not quite sure what had just transpired. His hand still hovered between them while Rey kept hers close to her chest, eyes wide like a startled animal. Neither knew what was going on, or what mysterious force had passed between them, and frankly, Ben wasn’t completely sure if he wanted to know. It must have something to do with the Force and all that mumbo-jumbo. His dad was just going to _love_ this. He could already hear the peals of laughter at his misfortune.

Still shaken, Rey focused on the controls in front of her. “So, Luke?” Even though she cleared her throat, her voice still had a rasp.

Ben tried not to pay attention to the desperation in her voice. “Yeah,” he replied. “I’ll take you there now, if you’re ready.”

“Yeah, now is as good a time as any.” She turned to face the window, lost in thought as specks of light from the stars bounced off her skin.

-

“Hey, kid.”

Ben quickly pocketed the small communicator and turned around, hands hidden behind his back. “Hey, Dad.” He watched as the older man brushed past him and laid a hand against the hull of the Millenium Falcon. It was like welcoming an old friend again, palms gently caressing the battered ship.

“Didn’t think you would be able to find her. Where was she?”

“Jakku. Unkar Plutt somehow got it, and it’s been in his junkyard for ten years.”

Han grimaced at the name. “Well, never thought to check there. Did you have to buy it back?”

Ben snorted and threw him a look with a raised brow. “You think I would give that guy anything?”

He ruffled his son’s hair, much to Ben’s chagrin, and grinned. “That’s my boy.”

Batting away the offending hands, Ben pat down his hair so it didn’t look like a bird’s nest. “So, what are you gonna do with it? I don’t think Mom would be too thrilled if you returned to smuggling.”

“And that’s why I’m not. I do races now, Ben. I’m too old to run away from the feds constantly.”

Ben stared blankly at him. “Are you telling me that I travelled to the ends of the galaxy and back for nothing? I almost died for this junk!”

“You can’t use that excuse, kid. You almost die on a daily basis, what with your rotten luck. And what would people think if they heard you call your own ship a piece of junk, huh?”

Just as he was about to rebut that it _was_ indeed a piece of junk, the second part of the sentence caught up with him, causing him to shut his mouth with a snap. He looked at his father, unsure if he was serious. “Mine?”

With another ruffle of his hair, Han turned back to their home where Leia watched the two like a hawk. “Take good care of her, kid. Treat her well, and she’ll do you good. You should probably get a co-pilot, whenever you get the chance,” he reminded him before leaving Ben alone with his ‘new’ ship.

Ben took out the communicator once again, turning it over in his palm. He told himself that it was nothing, not to get his hopes up, and yet, the fingers of his other hand came up to trace the outline of his lips. Would she contact him? He had given her a communicator, the other half of the set, in case she needed a break from Luke’s academy. Probably not, he concluded a moment later. Having a fair Master was what she needed after her old one.

“Ben!”

He looked at up his mother calling him to come inside. Waving in response, he started towards his parent’s home, wondering if Rey would think of him.

-

Butterflies didn’t even come close to describing what was happening inside his stomach. His hands felt weak from gripping the steering yoke so tightly, but he scarcely noticed; he was too busy concentrating on not throwing up whilst searching for the woman who was constantly on his mind.

A month. Only a month had passed before his communicator beeped, Rey’s voice following soon after. Honestly, he shouldn’t be surprised that a month was all it took for Rey to contact him, but then again, he didn’t think she would even respond to his offer. And she did more than just respond.

As the Millennium Falcon landed on the soft grass just outside the academy’s grounds, Ben could already see two familiar figures waiting for him below. Her message made it sound like she was desperate to get away from the academy, and yet Ben spied her distinct figure, clad in beiges and whites, having an amiable talk with his uncle. Oh no. They weren’t going to trick him to going back to the academy, were they?

Once landed, he approached the pair with his jaw set and his steps confident. If they thought Rey would be enough for him to return then… maybe, but he didn’t want to think about that. As he neared the duo, he caught the end of their conversation.

“I am sorry I couldn’t teach you more,” Luke said with a frown. “You’re more than welcome to stay longer, see if we can work something out—”

“We both know there’s no point in me staying here any longer. We tried, but it just didn’t work.”

Luke glanced over at his nephew, then back at Rey. “You sure?” he asked.

“Yeah. The balance I need isn’t here.” Rey smiled and clapped a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“Very well. Safe travels, and Ben! Try and stay out of trouble,” Luke said with a weary sigh.

Ben held his hands up in defense. “Hey, trouble always seemed to find me, not the other way around.”

When they were up in the air and out of the planet’s orbit, Ben looked at Rey from the corner of his eye. A part of him wanted to know what had happened down on the planet and what had changed her mind, but the constant fidgeting next to him was more distracting.

She wore the all-too-familiar robes Luke handed out to everyone, her finger pulling at the scratchy collar.

“These robes are the worst,” Rey commented as she immediately started to shed them, causing Ben to choke.

“Wh-What are you doing?!” he shrieked, shielding his eyes to give her some privacy.

“Oh my- I’m not stripping, you idiot!”

Ben slowly peeled his eyes open to take in the new outfit she donned.

She blew out a relieved sigh. “I thought I was going to die with those robes on.”

Gone were the beiges. Instead, grey cloths were draped across her body, forming an X over her black tunic and trousers. It was similar to the sandy-colored clothing he’d seen in their shared visions, only the color was different.

“Suits you.”

Rey coughed and pointed at his face, finger guestering at the unruly facial hair he’d neglected to groom for a month. “Can’t say the same for your face.”

“Hey, hey, hey, I saw how you reacted to my mugshot. This is nothing compared to that!” He struck a pose and stroked his bearded chin sagely, only to be met with a slap to his arm.

“Shut up,” she growled, covering her eyes from embarrassment.

He let out a laugh before sobering up slightly. “So, you ready for this?” he asked his new co-pilot.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” she said, giving Ben her complete attention.  

“Alright.” He rested his hand on the hyperdrive lever and turned to her once again. “You sure? Can’t turn back after this,” he warned.

With a huff, Rey surged forward and engaged the hyperdrive herself. “Don’t think twice. Just do it,” she said sternly, eyes holding his before flicking down to where their hands were touching.

Whilst she didn’t think anything of it, Ben became very still, too afraid to look down to where her hand remained on his.

Noticing how uncomfortable she was making him, a sly grin spread across her face. “Oh, this is going to be fun.”

“What? Fun? On _my_ ship?” He gasped and clutched his chest dramatically. “Where did you get that idea from?” Another playful punch to the arm. “Okay, okay. We’re going to meet with a prospective client on Coruscant,” he explained seriously. “It should be an easy first mission for you, but we _are_ scheduled to meet at the lower levels of the city, which means…”

_Zzzwpt!_

Rey ignited her lightsaber at his words, the blade still crackling with unstable energy but no longer a red color. Now, it was a pure white, illuminating their faces and the console before them.

In response, Ben took out his blaster and twirled it around his finger, exchanging looks with her as he did so. “Time to be honest, upstanding, working-class citizens.”

 


End file.
